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| Contaminated Sediment         Management Strategy Fact Sheet
April 1998
Introduction 
To address the ecological and human health risks that contaminated sediment         poses in many U.S. watersheds, EPA announces publication of its *Contaminated         Sediment Management Strategy*. Also available, through the Office of         Water Docket, is the *Response to Public Comments Document*. The         Strategy is an EPA workplan describing actions the Agency believes are         needed to bring about consideration and reduction of risks posed by contaminated         sediments. In the Strategy, EPA summarizes its understanding of the extent         and severity of sediment contamination, including uncertainties about         the dimension of the problem and describes the cross-program policy framework         in which the Agency intends to promote consideration and reduction of         ecological and human health risks posed by sediment contamination.       
The Strategy establishes four goals to manage the problem of contaminated         sediment, and describes actions the Agency intends to take to accomplish         these goals. The goals are: 1) to control sources of sediment contamination         and prevent the volume of contaminated sediment from increasing; 2) to         reduce the volume of existing (in-place) contaminated sediment; 3) to         ensure that sediment dredging and dredged material disposal are managed         in an environmentally sound manner; and 4) to develop a range of scientifically         sound sediment management tools for use in pollution prevention, source         control, remediation and dredged material management.       Concerns About Sediment Contamination
Recent studies of the quality of the nation's lakes, rivers, and bays,         and concerns about the economic impacts associated with contaminated fish         and disposal of contaminated dredged material make sediment contamination         an important issue.       - EPA estimates that 10 percent of the nation's lakes, rivers, and bays           have sediment contaminated with toxic chemicals that can kill fish living           in those waters or impair the health of people and wildlife who eat           contaminated fish ( Listing of Fish and Wildlife Consumption Advisories ,           EPA 823-C-97-004, 1997;  The Incidence and Severity of Sediment Contamination           in Surface Water of the United States , EPA 823-R-97-006, 007, 008,           1998).          Fifteen percent of the nation's lake acreage and 5 percent of the           nation's river miles are under state-issued fish consumption advisories.           All of the Great Lakes and a large portion of the nation's coastal waters           are also under advisory (*Listing of Fish and Wildlife Consumption           Advisories*, EPA 823-C-97-004, 1997).         Billions of dollars of economic activity are potentially affected           by contaminated sediment because of the loss of recreational and commercial           fishing and the increased cost of disposing of contaminated material           dredged to aid navigation.       
Why EPA Needs a Contaminated Sediment Management Strategy
EPA needs an Agency-wide Contaminated Sediment Management Strategy because         cooperation among many EPA offices is necessary to address the problem         of contaminated sediment.       - Contaminated sediment is an environmental problem in the nation's           water bodies that is not handled by a single EPA office or authority.          The multimedia sources of ongoing contamination and the need to remediate           historical contamination require coordinated Agency-wide actions.       What the Strategy Will Accomplish
The *Contaminated Sediment Management Strategy* sets forth an EPA         plan to accomplish a number of key actions.       - Agency programs will use consistent and scientifically sound sediment           assessment methods in their prevention or remediation processes.          Agency programs will use the first *National Sediment Quality Survey*           Report to Congress (EPA 823-R-97-006) and future biennial updates to           target chemicals and watersheds for further assessment, pollution prevention,           and remediation.         Where watersheds are clean, EPA will prevent sediment contamination           through point and nonpoint source controls, promoting best management           practices, and by testing new pesticides and other chemicals to ensure           that they will not cause sediment contamination.         
- Where watersheds are being contaminated, EPA will take appropriate           action through its point and nonpoint source control programs to reduce           or eliminate contaminant inputs.          Where watersheds are already contaminated, EPA will develop risk management           strategies and implement source controls.       To Obtain Copies of the Strategy
Copies of EPA's *Contaminated Sediment Management Strategy* are         available from the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency, National Center         for Environmental Publications and Information, P.O. Box 42419, Cincinnati,         Ohio, 45242. They may be ordered by phone at 800 490-9198; by fax at 513         489-8695; or  on-line.       
Download the         Strategy (PDF, 805kb, 131 pages, about         this format) April 1998      

 

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